Based in Seattle, International Foster Care Alliance [IFCA], is the only nonprofit organization that connects child welfare between the United States and Japan, and has foster care alumni teams in Seattle and Tokyo.

These two international teams visit each other’s country once a year.

IFCA’s Tokyo Alumni Team will be visiting for from 7/10 through 7/18 and will be engaged in a series of activities in the greater Seattle area.

These 4 young people from the Tokyo area, aged 20 through 29, grew up in various settings in Japan, including baby nurseries, group and foster homes and independent support facilities.

In Japan, most foster children still live in large capacity group care facilities. The Japanese government is being pressured by the United Nations to move these children from institutions to more family-like settings such as foster and kinship homes.

The 4-member Japanese delegation is eager to learn about foster youth advocacy and independent living programs in the United States and to use this knowledge to reform the system used for children and youth in foster care in Japan.

Alumni members will visit foster youth and child welfare service agencies to learn how the systems work in this country and will talk with area foster youth, human rights attorneys, social workers and foster parents.

The highlight of the trip is the Seattle and Tokyo Alumni Teams’ “Global Youth Summit” at the Phinney Neighborhood Center on Sunday July 12th, 2015. For more information, please open this link.